Authorities in Illinois say that a truck driver has been convicted on felony charges after stealing a load of rat traps that he was contracted to deliver.
On Tuesday, July 30, 31 year old truck driver Andrew A. Schwartz was found guilty of felony charges of theft and forgery, according to a news release from the Kane County State’s Attorney.
Prosecutors say that on September 29, 2017, Schwartz, a contract driver for J.B. Hunt, picked up a load of rat traps from a business in Elgin with instructions to deliver the load to a location in Ohio.
Rather than deliver the rat traps to the Ohio location, authorities say that Schwartz instead dropped off the load at the home of a friend in Wauconda, Illinois. Meanwhile, Schwartz told J.B. Hunt that the rat traps made it to their destination in Ohio.
The rat traps were valued at $27,616.
Prosecutors say that Schwartz faces “a sentence of probation or between 6 and 30 years’ imprisonment in the Illinois Department of Corrections.” Schwartz is subject to “enhanced sentencing guidelines” because of a previous criminal history, authorities say.
Schwartz remains free on $5000 bond. He is scheduled for sentencing on September 1, 2019.